Double-decker tour buses collide in New York's Times Square

People on a tour bus last week pass works of art displayed on digital billboards in Times Square.

People on a tour bus last week pass works of art displayed on digital billboards in Times Square. (Eric Thayer, Getty Images)

Laila Kearney, Of Reuters

NEW YORK — Two double-decker tour buses collided in New York's Times Square on Tuesday, injuring at least 11 people at the height of the summer tourist season, police and firefighters said.

The open-top buses collided near 47th Street and 7th Avenue, where a light pole holding a traffic signal lay toppled onto a pedestrian plaza packed with gawking visitors and entertainers dressed as Minnie Mouse, Elmo and other characters.

At least 11 people were injured, three seriously, and some were being transported to Roosevelt Hospital for treatment, a New York Fire Department spokesman said.

"We just suddenly heard this big boom," said Orville Anderson, who was sitting with his nephew near the site when the crash occurred on Tuesday afternoon.

"I saw the pole tumbling down to the ground," said Anderson, who said he also saw a woman lying on the ground who appeared to have broken her arm. He was sharing iPhone video he took of people climbing out of a wrecked bus with police.

Half a dozen emergency vehicles, including ambulances and fire trucks, were at the scene. One of the buses had its front section sheared off and one side smashed in.

A middle-aged man wearing shorts and sneakers had a 2-inch gash on his cheek and a bloodied hand wrapped in gauze. He stood talking to a younger man whose elbow was wrapped in gauze. Nearby a woman in her 20s holding an "I Love New York" bag wiped away her tears.

Police said they were still investigating and had no further information.